Railaco Mission – East Timor

Railaco Children’s Feeding Program:

Simply routine for long-time volunteer, Christina and the novices from the convent nearby to the Railaco Mission, but there’s many a heart-wrenching moment for city slickers like us unfamiliar with being at the ‘coal face’ and witnessing the gratitude of little children in this Railaco Feeding Program in three remote mountain villages.

Haunting Eyes of this little girl at Lebdodon village waiting for the meal

NIne years ago, motherly instincts ignited fellow-traveller Sue’s passion for doing something about the dreadful malnutrition and undersized babies that she saw on her first visit here. It was incomprehensible to her seeing goats that weren’t being milked and chickens producing eggs, such great sources of protein, that wasn’t being used to feed the children.

The opportunity to provide education of this most basic nature, coupled with finding a way to provide a nutritious meal for these children could not be ignored. This imperative emboldened a support group, recently formed by Fr Steve at the St Canice’s Jesuit parish in Sydney to stand in solidarity with modern-day missionaries like Filipino doctor and Jesuit Fr Bong, and others to provide funding for the existing Jesuit Mission in Railaco to do the job.

Eight years later, volunteer nurse Christina is still running the Children’s Feeding Program in Railaco Mission preparing and taking a nutritious meal to children in three villages three times a week.

And we were privileged enough to tag along.

 

Michael and Novice Sister Rita

 

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